THE ADMINISTRATION: Now, for the Substance

The occasion was Jimmy Carter's
first White House state dinner, held in honor of Mexico's President
Jose Lopez Portillo and his darkly glamorous wife. Carter and Rosalynn
escorted their visitors down the grand staircase. But there were no
trumpets, no color guard. Instead, the Presidents and their wives were
preceded by Misty Malarky Ying Yang, Amy's Siamese cat, which
stealthily descended the broad marble stairs, took one look at the
assembled guests and swiftly retreated to safety. Misty Malarky thereby
joined the Carter cardigan, the walk down Pennsylvania Avenue and the...